Holding saffron flags, volunteers of the VHP, Bajrang Dal and BJP raised slogans of Jai Shri Ram, with lorries playing devotional songs accompanying them at some places. (File/PTI) The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) held bike rallies at 47 locations in the capital on Sunday morning to spread awareness about its donation drive for the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya. VHP spokesperson Mahendra Rawat said this will be followed by a ‘prabhat pheri (morning processions)’ and bhajan programmes before the drive starts on February 1. It ends on February 27.
Holding saffron flags, volunteers of the VHP, Bajrang Dal and BJP raised slogans of Jai Shri Ram, with lorries playing devotional songs accompanying them at some places. They went around areas such as Andheria Mod, Trilokpuri, Mayur Vihar, Jangpura, Paschim Vihar, Tagore Garden and Vishnu Garden. The rally started at 10 am and lasted till afternoon in some areas. It was followed by a havan at several temples at Nangloi and Rajendra Nagar, and the opening of an office for fund collection in Tilak Nagar.
Vice-president of VHP’s Delhi unit Surender Gupta said the organisation has started contacting RWAs, trade unions, temples, students’ unions and other organisations, and will reach out to 42 lakh families through them. “Four-five groups will go to every area with 40,000 karyakartas of different Hindu organisations, who will be part of the drive,” he said.
Rawat said 175 camp offices are being opened across Delhi — either at temples or small shops — which will be the centre point for fund collection. During the drive, cadres will reach out to families to tell them about the plan on the structure of the temple and how the money will be deposited in the Sri Ram Janmabhoomi Teerth Kshetra Trust.